Synthetix is a DeFi (decentralized finance) protocol that offers on-chain exposure to various crypto and non-crypto assets. This protocol is based on the ETH (Ethereum) blockchain and provides users access to highly liquid synths (synthetic assets). Synths track and offer returns on the underlying asset without needing one to hold the investment directly.
Synthetix is a recent financial primitive that enables users to create synthetic assets and offers unique derivatives and exposure to real-world assets on the chain. Synths (Synthetic assets) are the type of assets that voters brought to existence by the community and can be in fiat, crypto, commodities, stocks, and anything else with a price.
What is Synthetix?
Currently, there is no decentralized digital currency useful for everyday economic purposes. Professionals propose a P2P (peer-to-peer) payment system and a stable token that does not depend on a central authority to preserve trust.
Synthetix is a DEX (decentralized exchange) platform for synthetic assets. The protocol exposes users to the underlying assets via synths; users do not even need to be holding the underlying asset.
This platform aims to expand the cryptocurrency world by introducing non-blockchain assets, providing admission to a more robust financial market.
Financial instruments that are made to simulate other instruments while altering key features, like duration and cash flow, are called Synthetic. These positions can give the traders this opportunity to lay out the capital to buy or sell the asset. These products are custom-designed investments (mostly for large investors).
This is a payment network where users could initially execute directly in price-stable crypto. It was a dual-token system that, combined with a set of novel mechanisms, stabilized the token’s price with respect to an external asset (it is no longer a stable coin).
The token on the network was initially a stablecoin and then became a DeFi (decentralized finance). This network has attracted many users, and it is worth mentioning that there was a massive surge in the token’s price in 2019(going from 0.03 dollars to 1.30 dollars).
Synthetix benefits
This platform allows users to exchange and trade synth tokens independently. It provides a staking pool in which holders can stake SNX tokens to earn rewards (with a share of the amount of transaction fees on the platform).
Synthetix platform uses smart contract price delivery protocols called oracles to track the underlying assets. This protocol allows users to trade SNX without liquidity/slippage issues. This platform eliminates the need for third-party facilitators.
Users can use SNX tokens as collateral for the synthetic assets that are minted, which means that whenever synths are issued, SNXs are locked up in a smart contract.
Since launch, the platform has transitioned to the Ethereum mainnet to reduce the gas fees on the network and lower oracle latency.
Synthetix background
This network came to be in September 2017. Kain Warwick started this corporation under the name Havven (HAV). A year after (2018), the company rebranded and became Synthetix.
Kain Warwick, the protocol’s founder, is a non-executive director at the blueshift retail network. Before founding this platform, he had worked on several other cryptocurrency projects. Warwick also established Pouncer, a live auction site exclusive to Australia.
Peter McKean is the protocol’s CEO. He has more than twenty years of experience in software development. He also used to work as a programmer at ICL Fujitsu.
Jordan Momtazi is the COO of the company. He is a market analyst, business strategist, and sales leader with many years of experience in blockchain, digital payments, cryptocurrency, and e-commerce systems.
Justin J. Moses is the CTO of the project. He used to be the director of engineering at MongoDB and deputy practice head of engineering at Lab49. He co-founded Pouncer.
There are about 212 million SNX coins, of which 114 million tokens is in circulation as of February 2021.
